According to Al-Arabiya, a Riyadh-based international news agency, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman has told U.S. Fox News that “that if Iran acquires a nuclear weapon, the Kingdom must possess it likewise.”
However, he also added that ” We are concerned about any country obtaining nuclear weapons…any country that uses nuclear weapons will be at war with all the countries of the world.” He also added that the world cannot afford another Hiroshima.
Controversially, he also told Fox News that the normalization of relations with Israel comes closer everyday with negotiations with the United States. Hamas, the Iranian-backed militant group in the Gaza Strip released this statement today, condemning any arrangement with Israel:
“We reject all forms of normalization and relations with the usurping Zionist entity, and we call on our Arab and Muslim brothers to boycott the occupation and support the struggle of our Palestinian people in light of the unfortunate escalation we are witnessing in normalization activities with the usurping Zionist occupation, including communication and meetings, and concluding normalization agreements in Several fields; We in the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) renew our rejection of all forms of normalization and relations with this fascist entity, which violates all international norms and laws, by continuing its occupation of the land of Palestine and accelerating the pace of settlement construction there, and its encroachment on the blood of our Palestinian people, and its desecration of our Islamic and Christian sanctities, especially the dangerous escalation.
In targeting the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque; And the enemy’s repeated incursions into it, seeking to divide and demolish it and build the alleged structure in its place. We call on everyone who followed the approach of normalization and relations with the Zionist entity to review and abandon this dangerous approach to Palestine and the entire region and its peoples, and to strengthen the boycott of this criminal, racist, occupying entity, which is led by a Zionist government that is considered the most extreme in its aspiration to complete the Zionist colonial project at the expense of the security and interests of our people and our nation. Arab and Islamic countries, taking advantage of these normalization steps to continue their policies and violations against our people, our land, and our sanctities. This principled position that we have long called for, there is an increasing need to adhere to it, and not to meet with the officials of this fascist government in light of the dangerous targeting of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque. We call on our Arab and Muslim brothers to stand up to their religious and national responsibilities towards Palestine, Jerusalem and the holy sites, and towards the Palestinian people, and to support and support them in their battle against the occupation to gain their freedom, restore their legitimate national rights, and establish their independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.”
While this statement does not specifically call out Saudi Arabia, the juxtaposition of the Crown Prince’s comments yesterday illuminates how difficult negotiations will be between Israel and Saudi Arabia considering the Palestinian issue is the major sticking point.
